


healing

by xehzee



Series: empty words [2]
Category: NieR: Automata (Video Game)
Genre: Gen, POV First Person
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-23
Updated: 2017-09-23
Packaged: 2019-04-07 02:23:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,812
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14070786
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xehzee/pseuds/xehzee
Summary: Popola looks for her missing sister.(re-upload)





	healing

_One morning._   

I lazily opened my eyes after having a good night’s sleep. It was a nice feeling, the warmth and comfort of my bed, the soft sensation of the sheets draping my body, the smell of fresh air seeping through the windows…but all that may as well have been an illusion. Because when I turned to the side, searching with my hands the indisputable source of that warmth, I couldn’t find it.  

 _I must_ _still_ _be_ _dreaming_ , I thought with a groggy mind.   

  

Work had been slow for the last days. As for that time,  _we_  didn’t have tasks that required us outside, especially not at such an early hour. In fact, there was hardly anything for us to do. So, for Devola to be already up at that time…it was strange. Maybe she had an urgent matter to attend to and was coming back any minute now.  That had to be it. 

… 

  

Ever since we reached this camp, things had been calm for us.  

The people here, well…they didn’t hate us. If I had to elaborate—dare I say it—they  _liked_  us.  

The whole atmosphere within the resistance was so much different from those other settlements in which we were horribly treated.  For those people, we were nothing more than scum,  _traitors_.  

Here, however, we could wander around and do our thing in peace, without fear of being attacked or ridiculed.  

At least...for now. Who knows  _when_  will someone remember the incident, and start with the wary looks, the distrust; the violence. 

With that thought still fresh in my mind, I rolled and got up from bed. That sliver of worry wouldn’t stop making its nest on my mind. Pointless, I know. But it wasn’t as if I could help it. 

  

I took a stroll around the camp, greeting people with a smile—the best one I could muster given the circumstances—before asking them about Devola's whereabouts. Some of them denied with utmost resolution, some of them averted their gaze with a small frown in their features. 

What was going on? 

On my way to the front, I was approached by a couple of resistance members without me noticing it.  

I flinched when they first addressed me, startling them both as well.  

"Sorry, sorry, we didn’t mean to frighten you, we just wanted to..." 

They shared a look, before the other finished the sentence the first started. 

"...know where...where are you going?" 

Their eyes didn't show a trace of malice; they were as honest as they got.  

"I'm looking for my sister, have you seen her?" I said with little reassurance. 

Then one of them lowly giggled, and that set some alarms.  

Could it be that…something had happened to her? That these people...did something to her? And to still keep such an open smile on their faces…those kind of people were the worst. 

Maybe it was because they sensed my discomfort, or not, it didn’t matter.  

"Um, yes. Yes, we have seen her, just a while ago in fact. She's, s-she's okay in case you're wondering..." 

"Yeah! She's on the usual spot! As always. Ah, but she was running some errands so maybe she isn't there anymore..." 

"Thanks." I had had enough of them already so I nodded and stride in that direction before they could say anything else. I didn’t have the time for proper farewells. 

  

Life was nice to us, for the first time in years. That is what I wanted to believe.  

I wanted to, I wanted to. But…it was so hard. 

Hard to trust in people. Hard to believe in this placid moments. Hard to trust myself. 

I know I could talk to Devola about my fears and insecurities. No doubts there, there shouldn’t be secrets between us but…I didn’t want to burden her with them. She had enough on her plate as well. For me to cause her more unnecessary pain was unforgivable. And at the same time… 

I hated it. I loathed that part of me. The part that had to keep things from  _my own sister_. What if, by hiding them, I was hurting her the most? 

I didn’t want the light on her eyes to stop shining by carrying any form of sorrow.  

  

My hands trembled a little. She wasn’t at the location the couple told me about.  

 _They lied to me_. I couldn’t believe it. So pathetic…of me.  _In this place there is none of that_ _. People here are different_. For as little time we have passed in this settlement, I knew it. There wasn’t side glances nor spatting or threats. That didn’t mean they wouldn’t… 

 _Unacceptable_   _!_   

If I let the seed of doubt grow inside me, I don’t know what I’d do. Getting riled up because of an innocent laugh was bad enough. I was at the defensive, yes, but it was for a good cause. It didn’t matter, Devola was not there. I still had more places to search for her.  

And if the moment came in which she was hurt, I wouldn’t hesitate to tear the perpetrator apart. 

 

Although there was something I didn’t understand. If it were me the one leaving without prior notice, surely the camp would be on fire already. Or at least, Devola’s freaking out would be noticeable. For her to do exactly what she always tells me not to do… 

The more I thought about it, the stranger the case was. And it didn’t help any, so I just keep my searching going. 

 

Devola was prone to boredom. She rather liked the murmur of a busy street than the quietness of a lazy morning. It was likely to find her on a spot where she could chat away her troubles.  

 _“What do you guys do for fun?” “Why is everyone so quiet? Sheesh, you’re all so boring…” “Where the hell is the thing? I asked for it ages ago! What do you mean what thing? Do I have to spell it out for you?” “Oi, Popola, where have you been?”_   

 _That_  place could only be one. Devola  _had_ to be there _._  

 

I reached the back of the resistance camp and the last sliver of hope vanished.  

 _What should I do now? Maybe if I retrace my steps… Dammit. Devola, where are you?_   

Before I could do something rash, Anemone called out to me. When I arrived at her spot, she spoke to me softly. 

“Good morning, Popola. I have something to give to you from…are you okay? You seem a little tense.” 

So my distress was obvious on top of everything. 

“Y-yes, I am well. What was it you have for me?” 

Anemone stared at me for a few more seconds, worry evident on her eyes. Then, she remembered something and sighed before shaking her head. The smile she gave me—even if tiny—was full of sympathy. 

“It’s a message from Devola…” 

 

I returned to our room. There wasn’t any reason to be anxious anymore. Devola was fine. No reason at all…then why couldn’t I shake those bad feelings away? 

She knew I would worry. Then why leave like that? 

The message was scribbled on a small piece of paper. It was pretty vague, and of no use at all.  

“Go back to our room.” 

So she knew I was looking for her…that made all my searching useless.  

Besides, hadn’t I used the only path to the front? And yet, somehow, I missed her.  

Sneaky sis.  

Well, I had nothing to lose now, did I? I went all the way back to our room  _hoping_  to finally find her there. 

  

As expected, the room was empty, the same as when I left it.  

Or so I thought. On a closer look, I realized there was something slightly different.  

A white flower, like the ones we both arranged our hair with, lied on top of a folded paper on the clumsily made bed. I advanced toward it while a spiral of feelings ran through my head.  

I sighed in relief when I opened the letter to find my sister’s distinctive handwriting inside.  

"Follow the clues" 

Clues? For what? A…game? 

…we hadn't played like this since a long time…what might be the occasion? 

I had nothing to lose though, so I just gave in and read the rest of the letter. 

  

The first  _clue_  was just outside our shared room. A simple arrow made of pebbles, pointing ahead. 

…wasn't that the way I had followed when I went off to find her? More importantly, how did I miss it in the first place? 

 _My mind wasn't on it, I was too worried something had happened to her to see it,_ were the lame excuses for my slip.  

 

It didn’t take long to see how desperate Devola’s got as her game went on and on. From cautiously arranged signs, to poorly manufactured indications, I was surprised to see how much care she put on it, even at the cost of her own sanity. It wasn't like her at all.  

The goal had to be something very special to have her arrange the things like this. 

Finally, I made it to the last one. A messy scribble on the floor telling me to hurry up to the back of the camp, to “that place where people gather to pass the time”. 

"Got it" I giggled and ran in that direction, earning a couple of curious glances from the people walking by. 

 

The mystery of her disappearing was long forgotten, I just wanted reassurance of Devola’s well-being. The sooner, the better. 

I finally made it there, and felt a sting of worry upon seeing people standing in a circle. Their backs were to me and they were laughing at something. I thought of the worst.  

I was ready to punch in the face at whoever dare to make such a cruel joke when I heard Devola…laughing.  _I_  hadn't hear  _m_ _y_  sister laughing—so heartily, so happy—ever since a long time ago. 

My eyes were beginning to swell up with tears, but I strained to keep them in place. Such a display could wait for later. In that moment I just wanted to hold Devola in my arms.  

Making my way through the people—perhaps too rudely for the ambiance—I advanced until I stood in the middle of the circle. And there she was.  

The center of attention, Devola sitting on a made up chair, holding something in her arms. A stringed instrument. She finished the tuning while telling some joke to the people around her; her smile so radiant and beautiful, as she always was, Devola,  _my dear sister Devola_. 

She turned my way and her smile got even brighter, dazzling. I couldn’t hold the tears any longer when she… 

...when she sang for me.

 


End file.
